Power Plant in N.B. Unable to Resume Production Due to Equipment Failure

Point Lepreau nuclear generating station in New Brunswick has missed its return-to-service date due to an equipment failure during startup, as confirmed by N.B. Power. The plant has been offline since mid-July for a 140-day maintenance outage, which was supposed to end before the cold weather sets in. Replacing Lepreau’s output with alternative energy sources costs N.B. Power between $1 million and $4 million daily, particularly during cold snaps. N.B. Power has indicated that Lepreau may return online later in December.